Campaign to attract tourists to regional Western Australia criticised as bland

A couple, featured in WA Tourism's new campaign to promote regional WA, stare up at a gorge in the Kimberley.

Tourism WA

The first television campaign in three years to try and lure Eastern States travellers to regional Western Australia has been criticised as "bland."

Tourism WA is spending $3.6 million screening two new ads on television and cinema screens in Perth, Sydney and Melbourne.

One of the ads focuses on the state's South West, showing a couple enjoying romantic moments at Margaret River vineyards and at the Stirling Ranges.

The other was shot in Kimberley, and shows a second couple under the stars, at the Bungle Bungles, and at Broome's Cable Beach.

The Tourism Council of WA's chief executive Evan Hall says it is fantastic to have the ads.

"It's been a long time since we've been showing an ad in Sydney and Melbourne to attract people to WA," he said.

"It's been a couple of years now, and we've definitely suffered as a result.

"We've got a lot to offer, but it doesn't matter help if you don't tell the market about it."

It is hoped the ads will boost the number of people travelling to tourist towns which have suffered from a drop-off in interstate and international bookings in recent years.

Data from Tourism Research Australia shows the number of domestic and international visitors staying in Broome has dropped 20 per-cent since 2006.

That has resulted in retail stores closing and jobs being lost but there are hopes the new campaign will revive tourist numbers.

'Could be swimming anywhere'

But, one critic has dismissed the ads as bland and wishy-washy.

Lara Wilde is the Economic Development Officer at the Shire of Halls Creek, where part of the north-west ad was filmed.

She says the focus on the romantic couple was a bit too much.

"They wander through the Bungles and they wander through the Spinifex and there's lots of hugging and kissing," she said.

"They pull up on Cable Beach. and it's all very sweet but they could have been have just as easily been swimming in the Northern Territory, or pulling up at any beach in Western Australia.

"It's wasn't really nailing it for me as to where they were."

Ms Wilde says the ads failed to capture the adventurous spirit of the Kimberley,

"To be totally honest, it was a bit bland," she said.

"There are so many exciting things that they could have put in there, and so many amazing experiences.

"I know that their little motto is about the extraordinary but I don't think they hit on the extraordinary part of the Kimberley."

But, Mr Hall says the ads were carefully crafted to appeal to a specific demographic.

"They're designed to create a really strong emotional desire to come to Western Australia, and they're very much targeted at women decision-makers within couples," he said.

"It's very much focused on a couples market coming away for a romantic experience in Western Australia."

He says it's a smart move to hone in a market segment with the budget to come to the opposite end of the country.

"It's a lucrative market; they're not just looking for the quick get-away weekend," he said.

"It's the part of the market segment that's prepared to get over to Perth and then up to Broome, so it's well-targetted at people who are willing to travel the distances tat we have in Western Australia."

The ads will start screening this week.

The Tourism Council says it is not what people think of the style of the ads, it is the number of new bookings that matter.